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Spencer Strider won't pick up a baseball for a month, and that is the good news for the Atlanta Braves.
Strider has been shut down from throwing for four weeks following a consultation with Dr. Keith Meister. He'll then have a follow-up MRI. A clean scan would clear him to start a throwing progression.
Given where this looked headed on Friday night, the Braves have to be relieved.
An MRI taken Saturday in Atlanta came back showing nothing but inflammation and no ligament damage. For Strider, it's a huge relief, because there isn't much natural ligament left to work with. He had Tommy John surgery at Clemson in 2019 and an internal brace put in the same elbow in 2024, the latter by Dr. Meister himself.
So the four weeks of rest beats the alternative everyone was bracing for.
When he might actually pitch is the harder question to answer. Strider is due for a follow-up MRI in mid-July, and a clean one would let him start throwing around the All-Star break. Realistically, after a four-week shut down, the best case scenario would have Strider back in late August. It's more likely he will return in September.
The window changes how Atlanta operates over the next seven weeks. It opens the door to a 60-day injured list move, and with the Aug. 3 trade deadline looming, it sharpens the case for going out and getting an arm. Maybe two.
Strider came out of Friday's 7-5 loss to the Mets after three-plus innings, charged with a season-high seven earned runs, his fastball sinking from 96 miles per hour to 88 mph by the fourth inning. He was placed on the IL Saturday.
He opened the season on the injured list with a left oblique strain and sits at 4-2 with a 5.31 ERA across eight starts. The dip in velocity has been a red flag all year. A four-seam fastball that averaged 97.2 mph in 2023 is down to 95.1, and the swings-and-misses have disappeared with the speed.
His absence further deteriorates a rotation that was already short. Neither Spencer Schwellenbach nor Hurston Waldrep has thrown a pitch for Atlanta this season. No.2 prospect JR Ritchie, who carries a 3.82 ERA over 30 2/3 inning with the club, will slot into Strider's spot.
Somehow it hasn't mattered in the standings. The Braves sit atop the National League East at 46-25, riding out injuries to Ronald Acuna Jr. as well as Schwellenbach and Strider, again.
Atlanta reinstated catcher Drake Baldwin from the injured list Monday, returning one of their best bats to a lineup that had been getting next to nothing from the position. To clear the roster spot, Atlanta outrighted catcher Austin Wynns.
Baldwin strained his right oblique against the Marlins on May 18 and drew Grade 1 diagnosis the next day. Before the injury, Baldwin was the front-runner to start the All-Star Game at catcher for the National League. he was slashing .303/.389/.543 with 13 home runs and 38 RBIs. The NL Rookie of the Year gives the lineup a real lift.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Spencer Strider injury update on his elbow, surgery and Braves return
Continue reading...
Strider has been shut down from throwing for four weeks following a consultation with Dr. Keith Meister. He'll then have a follow-up MRI. A clean scan would clear him to start a throwing progression.
Given where this looked headed on Friday night, the Braves have to be relieved.
An MRI taken Saturday in Atlanta came back showing nothing but inflammation and no ligament damage. For Strider, it's a huge relief, because there isn't much natural ligament left to work with. He had Tommy John surgery at Clemson in 2019 and an internal brace put in the same elbow in 2024, the latter by Dr. Meister himself.
So the four weeks of rest beats the alternative everyone was bracing for.
When with Spencer Strider return?
When he might actually pitch is the harder question to answer. Strider is due for a follow-up MRI in mid-July, and a clean one would let him start throwing around the All-Star break. Realistically, after a four-week shut down, the best case scenario would have Strider back in late August. It's more likely he will return in September.
The window changes how Atlanta operates over the next seven weeks. It opens the door to a 60-day injured list move, and with the Aug. 3 trade deadline looming, it sharpens the case for going out and getting an arm. Maybe two.
Spencer Strider injury
Strider came out of Friday's 7-5 loss to the Mets after three-plus innings, charged with a season-high seven earned runs, his fastball sinking from 96 miles per hour to 88 mph by the fourth inning. He was placed on the IL Saturday.
He opened the season on the injured list with a left oblique strain and sits at 4-2 with a 5.31 ERA across eight starts. The dip in velocity has been a red flag all year. A four-seam fastball that averaged 97.2 mph in 2023 is down to 95.1, and the swings-and-misses have disappeared with the speed.
His absence further deteriorates a rotation that was already short. Neither Spencer Schwellenbach nor Hurston Waldrep has thrown a pitch for Atlanta this season. No.2 prospect JR Ritchie, who carries a 3.82 ERA over 30 2/3 inning with the club, will slot into Strider's spot.
Somehow it hasn't mattered in the standings. The Braves sit atop the National League East at 46-25, riding out injuries to Ronald Acuna Jr. as well as Schwellenbach and Strider, again.
Braves get Drake Baldwin back behind the plate
Atlanta reinstated catcher Drake Baldwin from the injured list Monday, returning one of their best bats to a lineup that had been getting next to nothing from the position. To clear the roster spot, Atlanta outrighted catcher Austin Wynns.
Baldwin strained his right oblique against the Marlins on May 18 and drew Grade 1 diagnosis the next day. Before the injury, Baldwin was the front-runner to start the All-Star Game at catcher for the National League. he was slashing .303/.389/.543 with 13 home runs and 38 RBIs. The NL Rookie of the Year gives the lineup a real lift.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Spencer Strider injury update on his elbow, surgery and Braves return
Continue reading...
